G778 The Stages of Grace: Life and Love in the Face of Alzheimer's
Author: Connie Ruben
Publisher: Xlibris
Publishing Date: 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4990-5347-0
Summary:
This book was written in part to honor Grace Ruben as a profoundly important person, but it was also born of a desire to share with others who have loved ones with Alzheimer s disease what Connie Ruben experienced as Grace s caregiver and friend. Connie wanted to capture the emotions, the expected and unexpected issues, the painful times, as well as the humorous and loving moments that she and Grace have shared as a result of this disease. This book is not meant to be a handbook for dealing with Alzheimer s disease, but Ms. Ruben hopes that by sharing her feelings and experiences, readers may recognize that they are not alone on this particular journey.
Author Info:
(From iRead Book Tours)
Meet the Author:
Connie Ruben is an entrepreneur with well developed management skills. She has run several large companies, and prides herself on empowering others to work to their full potential. Connie also has an intimate knowledge of the challenges and joys of caring for a family member with Alzheimer’s disease, as her mother-in-law Grace was diagnosed with advanced Alzheimer’s disease in 2003. While Connie still struggles to balance her work life and home life, her understanding of this disease has made it easier for her to negotiate the demands of being a caregiver, as well as a wife, mother, and employer. She has written this book in order to share the insights she has gained as Grace’s primary caregiver and friend. Most importantly, Connie wants this book to assure others that caring for someone with Alzheimer’s disease can be enjoyable, life-affirming, and emotionally significant.
Connect with the author: Website
Connie Ruben is an entrepreneur with well developed management skills. She has run several large companies, and prides herself on empowering others to work to their full potential. Connie also has an intimate knowledge of the challenges and joys of caring for a family member with Alzheimer’s disease, as her mother-in-law Grace was diagnosed with advanced Alzheimer’s disease in 2003. While Connie still struggles to balance her work life and home life, her understanding of this disease has made it easier for her to negotiate the demands of being a caregiver, as well as a wife, mother, and employer. She has written this book in order to share the insights she has gained as Grace’s primary caregiver and friend. Most importantly, Connie wants this book to assure others that caring for someone with Alzheimer’s disease can be enjoyable, life-affirming, and emotionally significant.
Connect with the author: Website
Personal Opinion:
I've had a difficult time reading this book. Not because of the writing, but because of the subject matter of Alzheimer's. One of my worst fears is developing this disease, and it is not an easy read or journey. One reason that I read this book is because someone I know might suffer from it, and I kind of wanted to see whether or not my suspicions are correct. I'm still not sure, but I'm beginning to think so. While reading the book, some things that I thought about include the parallels between seven stages of grief and the seven chapters in the book: the seven stages of grief are: shock or disbelief, denial, bargaining, guilt, anger, depression, and acceptance/hope. The topics that are covered in the chapters are: Grace, hindsight, insight, adaptability, negotiation, fallibility, and acceptance. The way the journey is written is linear rather than random, which means the reader sees Grace from the time she and the author meet to the current stage of Alzheimer's. What I also thought it interesting is how it seems like being a caretaker is similar to being a parent and the parallel of beginning and ending of life. (Young baby gains what someone with Alzheimer's loses.)
This is for iRead Book Tours
TOUR SCHEDULE:
Nov 21 - Books for Books - book spotlight
Nov 21 - #redhead.with.book - review / giveaway
Nov 22 - Working Mommy Journal - review / giveaway
Nov 23 - Library of Clean Reads - review / giveaway
Nov 23 - Books, Dreams, Life - book spotlight
Nov 24 - The Autistic Gamer - review
Nov 25 - Library of Clean Reads - author interview / giveaway
Nov 28 - Olio by Marilyn - review / author interview / giveaway
Nov 29 - A Mama's Corner of the World - review / giveaway
Nov 30 - T's Stuff - book spotlight / author interview / giveaway
Dec 1 - Bound 4 Escape - review / giveaway
Dec 2 - Collecting Moments - book spotlight / guest post
Dec 2 - Readers Muse - review
Dec 5 - Bookaholic Banter - review / guest post
Dec 6 - Jessica Cassidy - review / author interview / giveaway
Dec 7 - Corinne Rodrigues - review
Dec 8 - My Life. One Story at a Time.- book spotlight / guest post / giveaway
Dec 9 - Over the hills and far away - review / giveaway
Dec 9 - Svetlana's Reads and Views - review
5 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)
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